but i know, i know, you can be beautiful
by ipsa dixit
Summary: Maybe, if she was falling in love with Scorpius, that wouldn't be too bad. As long as he loved her back./for mary [royalty!au]


for mary, via the december one-shot exchange (scorose, royal!au, romance/angst) hope you like it!

for the ql, whinging warriors, chaser 2, the ugly duckling!au, plus: bleeding, hate, no using the letter j

for the insane house challenge [scorpius/rose], the new year's resolutions [gift fic for a gryff, an au you've never written, next gen], 365 prompts challenge [royal!au], the sticker challenge [diadem sticker - royal!au], musical section of the writing club [words fail - worthy], buttons section of the writing club [scorpius malfoy, "take my hand", pretty], happy newt year [midnight - write about a kiss], the yule ball [asking out your date - write a meet-cute], the hogwarts oracle [write about a kiss at midnight], the bathbomb challenge [fairytale!au]

thank you so much to em for betaing!

word count: 2003 words by google docs (wow. long. for me.)

* * *

Rose's least favorite day of the week was Tuesday. She _hated_ Tuesdays. It was the day her mother always threw a ball. It was the day where she was expected to be perfect in front of everyone so that one of the many handsome princes that came might choose her for marriage.

Well, Rose wasn't perfect and she had no desire to be. She also had no desire to be chosen by someone, like she was an apple at the market. She'd rather marry someone because she _loved_ them.

Of course, her mother would remind her every week as she pulled Rose's ginger hair back tightly, that wasn't the way things worked. She was a _princess_. She wouldn't marry a commoner. She would marry into another royal family and make their family even stronger.

There was also the fact that she'd never be chosen. The only way she would even have a tiny chance of being chosen was when all of her cousins were picked. All of them, from the stunningly beautiful Victore to the still little Lily, were prettier than Rose, and more obedient. They didn't mind having their hair pulled into neat, tight buns. They didn't mind extravagant dresses or dancing with strangers. Rose, on the other hand, usually had at least a few strands of hair loose by the beginning of the night. At the end of the night, she was a mess.

This week was like every other week, with Rose complaining as her mother tied her hair into a tight knot.

"I'm telling you, Mother, no boy will choose _me_. No decent boy, at least," Rose insisted, pouting at the mirror in front of her.

"Rose," her mother warned. Her face in the mirror was already perfectly made-up, but Rose knew that as soon as she was done with Rose's hair she would be redoing all of it. "I am sick of having this conversation every single week." Her mother's face was kind, but she looked tired. "You are going, no matter what you say. I think there might be a prince tonight who could be good for you."

"Chances are, I'll like him and he'll think I'm too ugly for him." Rose looked down self consciously at her extruding stomach. "Or too fat," she added, poking herself. Rose sighed as her mother lifted her head up, forcing her to look at herself in the mirror. She also hated her thousands of freckles.

"You're very pretty, Darling. Don't ever forget that." Rose's mother gave her a light kiss on the forehead as Rose rolled her eyes.

"You have to say that. You're my mum," she said, averting her eyes as her mother turned the chair to make their eyes meet.

"And that's why it counts, Rosie. Now, get ready."

Her mother laid one last kiss on Rose's forehead before walking out of Rose's room, leaving her to get her shimmery dress on.

In the mirror, Rose gave herself one last look, sighing, before changing into her ball gown.

* * *

Rose sought comfort in the food table. As soon as she walked into the ballroom, she made a beeline to the buffet table, covered in all sorts of pastries and drinks. Grabbing one of her favorite cannolis, she hugged the wall, dreading the moment her new suitors walked in. Hoping her mother would make her stand at the front, Rose put the cannoli in her mouth as she turned towards the grand doors of the ballroom. The huge oak doors swung inwards and two men walked inside, almost identical, except one was obviously younger than the other. They both had blond hair, light grey suits, and crowns, and they both walked with a royal air, which, Rose realised, made sense, considering they probably _were_ royal. Rose's mother was standing there to greet them, along with her aunts, Ginny and Angelina. The older of the blonds took Rose's mother hand and gave it a kiss, before doing the same to Rose's aunts. He muttered something Rose couldn't hear. Straightening up, he waved an arm towards the younger boy.

"My son," he said, in a louder voice than before. "Scorpius."

Scorpius gave the room a sweeping look, his eyes landing on Rose and giving her a polite smile. She didn't return it, instead looking at Lily, who was standing across the room, smoothing out her beautiful blue dress and standing up a little bit taller.

"Great," Rose muttered to herself. _Lily_ was interested in this prince, which meant even less of a chance for her.

Scorpius was about to step forward, presumably to also give the older women's hands kisses, but he tripped over his own two feet and fell, right onto his face. Immediately, five people flocked to him, trying to help him up. He straightened up and waved them all away, clutching his cheek. He then took his hand away, revealing a slight bruise, but he smiled all the same and bowed to the women in front of him.

As more princes came in, Scorpius and his father walked away from Rose's mother and aunts. Rose watched as Scorpius detached himself from his father and headed right to the food table, where Rose was standing.

"Good evening," he said when he reached the table, bowing his head. He picked up a cup from the table and poured some ice into it before pressing it to his face. "Excuse me," he said, smiling slightly. Instead of responding, Rose instead took another cannoli and ate it, giving him a small smile.

They stood there in an awkward silence for a bit, taking each other in before Rose pointed to Scorpius' cheek.

"Are you bleeding?"

"No, I don't think so," he answered, slowly removing the cup of ice from his face. There was a black a blue mark there that made Rose wince. "Is it that bad?" he asked, his brows furrowing.

"No," Rose lied. "Don't worry; you're still pretty."

Scorpius raised an eyebrow at her, a smirk appearing on his face. Rose blushed, the heat spreading across her face, as she realised what she had said.

"Scorpius Malfoy, prince of Knockturn. Wanna dance?" he offered, extending a hand. He raised both of his eyebrows expectantly, waiting for her. "Take my hand."

Rose shook her head quickly. "No, I don't dance," she said, taking a step back. _Oh brilliant_ , she thought, internally cringing. H _e might actually like you and you're pushing him away? Why do you do this?_

"Okay," Scorpius said, withdrawing his hand. He looked slightly put off. "What do you want to do, then?"

"Get out of here," Rose said immediately, not thinking. She did _not_ like the smile that appeared on Scorpius' face.

"Your wish is my command, Princess," he said, the grin reaching both of his ears. Grabbing her hand and taking her by surprise, Scorpius led her to the dance floor.

"What are you doing?" she hissed. She already told him that she didn't want to dance with him.

"Trust me. I've had other balls. I know what happens. Our parents will be looking for us," he explained, starting to lead her in a simple waltz, as the music started up. Rose felt the hairs on her neck rise as Scorpius laid a hand there. "Once they see us dancing nicely, they'll leave us alone."

They danced for the next few minutes, the anxiety engulfing Rose starting to deteriorate. She closed her eyes and let her brain concentrate on things other than the fact that Scorpius smelled nice and she might be falling in love with him, slowly, even though she didn't want to and Scorpius probably wouldn't actually _love_ her.

"Okay, good," he said, his voice disturbing her from her thought. "My dad already looked at us, so I think we're good. Let's go."

Scorpius led her to where the band was playing and took her through a door behind them, leading them straight outside.

"How'd you know that door was there?" Rose asked, frowning. She had never known about it and it was _her_ ballroom.

"I like to know where exits are," Scorpius said simply, turning to her and grinning. "There. I got you out, Princess."

Rose rolled her eyes. "Don't call me 'Princess'."

"Whatever you say. Princess."

Rose brought her hands up to her shoulders, feeling the sudden gust of wind hit them. She took a deep breath as she looked out over the night, the thousands of stars glittering over miles and miles of dark sky. She was actually free from one of the balls. "So, what do we do now?"

"Simply hang out," he replied, taking off his suit coat and putting around her shoulders. _Wow_ , she thought. _He really is a charmer_. "Sorry. I should've given you my coat when we got out here. It's chilly."

Rose smiled at him, pulling his suit coat around herself more, and then took a seat on the grass. It was slightly wet, having rained the night before. "Simply hang out," she echoed.

Maybe, if she was falling in love with Scorpius, that wouldn't be too bad.

As long as he loved her back.

* * *

Three hours later, Rose decided that if not her future husband, maybe Scorpius would be her friend. It was nice to have someone to sit with and talk. She, for the first time, actually felt like a normal teenager.

"Hey, it's nearly midnight," Scorpius said, interrupting her laughter at one of his funny remarks. "We should probably get back inside."

Rose nodded, looking right into his eyes. She didn't want the night to end, but she knew it had to eventually. His grey eyes met hers and, before she knew what was happening, he took her face in his hands and kissed her, hard.

They stayed like that for a few moments before Rose pulled away, breathing heavily.

"Oh," she managed, in shock. A giddy feeling was filling her, unlike anything she had ever felt before.

"Sorry," he said immediately, looking scared for the first time since she had met him. All Rose could do was nod, and take his face in her hand and kiss him again. He pulled away this time, touching his face where Rose had grabbed it. "Bruise," he said, looking at her with something deep in his eyes—admiration?

"Sorry," she said quickly. "We should get back," she added quietly. He nodded, laughed a little bit, and took her hand as they stood up, heading back inside.

* * *

That night, Rose couldn't stop smiling. She didn't care anymore. She would embrace it. She was in love with Scorpius Malfoy and she felt over the moon about it.

Her mother caught on.

"Anyone catch your fancy tonight?" she asked as she helped Rose unpin her hair from the bun.

"Maybe," Rose said, running her fingers through her newly loose hair. "I'm still… deciding."

"I saw you dancing with the Malfoy prince, I think," her mother asked. Rose saw a smirk appearing on her face in the mirror. Her mother may be royal like her, but she still was intuitive and knew Rose as well as Rose knew herself.

"I think he's a bit a tosser, honestly," she said. Unable to contain herself any longer, a grin appeared on her face. "but he might be worth looking into."

Rose's mother took the last bobby pin out of her ginger mess of hair and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Well, only the best is worthy for my only daughter."

Rose started to get undressed and into night clothes as her mother walked out. Before turning off her light, she paused in the mirror, evaluating her face.

There were millions of freckles, spreading out across her face, reminding her of the stars her and Scorpius looked at under and hour previous. Her eyes were a simple brown, but there was a sparkle in them she hadn't noticed before. There was a slight roundness in her face, but Rose found herself not caring.

For the first time, she thought she was beautiful.


End file.
